Fabory operates a 50,000 square-foot warehouse in Cascade Township. The division of W. W. Grainger is based in the Netherlands city of Tilburg. Courtesy Fabory

Fabory — a Dutch industrial fasteners distributor acquired last year by W. W. Grainger Inc. of Chicago — celebrated its new 50,000-square-foot office and warehouse facility recently at 3366 Kraft Ave. in Cascade Township. Prior to its acquisition, Fabory had a distribution center in Byron Center for about 30 years, according to Grainger spokesperson Kelly France.

She said the new location employs almost 40 people, and the company anticipates hiring about eight more over the next couple of years.

Mike Setlock, general manager of Fabory North America, and Fabory CEO Oswald Van Den Belt, led the celebration.

The company, originally Borstlap & Sons, went into business in the Dutch coastal town of Scheveningen in 1947, selling a wide variety of industrial fastener products under its brand name, Fabory. Later, the company re-located in Tilburg and officially became Fabory in 2006, with sales operations in 14 countries in Europe, North America and Asia. Its product range includes more than 55,000 different fasteners in all shapes and sizes plus chemical products, including tapes, adhesives and sealants and hand and power tools.

W. W. Grainger Inc. (NYSE: GWW) had 2011 sales of $8.1 billion and is one of North America’s largest industrial suppliers of maintenance, repair and operating products, with expanding global operations. It was founded in Chicago in 1927 and has long had a sales center on Roger B. Chaffee Drive in Wyoming.

Restricted Content

About GRBJ

Since 1983, the Grand Rapids Business Journal has been West Michigan's primary and most-trusted source of local business news. The weekly print edition of the Business Journal, a must-read for the area’s top decision-makers, is known as the business newspaper of metro Grand Rapids, Holland, Muskegon and all of West Michigan.

grbj.com provides the same trusted and objective business reporting that the Business Journal is known for -- plus real-time original content, timely enewsletters/alerts, exclusive blogs and more. Business Journal subscribers receive the weekly print edition, including bonus publications like the annual Book of Lists, and also complete access to all content on grbj.com.

The Grand Rapids Business Journal is published by Gemini Publications.